nomad

MIT Suggests Future Phone Apps

Crazy. All of this functionality is stuff we explored in Sqwhere:

“When Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Hal Abelson asked 20 computer science students tto design a software program for cell phones that use Google’s upcoming mobile operating system Android, they came back with an  array of services that give us a picture of how me might be using our phones in the future. Most of the projects were location based services, AP reports. Here’s a run down:

GeoLife gives users a way to set to-do lists and get reminders on their phones. Walk by the market, and the device might buzz with a message that you’re supposed to pick up milk. Another effort, named Flare, was designed to help small businesses like pizza shops cheaply track their drivers.Locale lets users configure their phones to automatically adjust their settings when the devices detect themselves in certain zones. So you might set your phone to automatically go into vibrate mode in the office and silent mode at the movie theatre, and ring everywhere else… The software will adjust its operation based on factors beyond location. Perhaps calls from certain people in the contact list could go through in some locations, but not in others. Or the phone could tweak its screen brightness depending on remaining battery life.

Public -  a social-networking program that helps people make new friends in their area.

Loco offers a way to find events around town and invite other people.

Snap guides users to interesting places in their vicinity.

KEI - software that enables a cell phone to unlock your car. It was the lone entrant not to tap the location craze.”   (via PSFK)